5th PENTAX DAY (PART II)

During the meal and the meeting, the club table was managed by Diana,
Darios nice sister who also did her very best in translating our talks to Mr.
deLoach and his wife, Kathy.

The afternoon passed with more model photo sessions in an area close to
the beach and then on the shoreline. Here we wish to extend our gratitude to Angela and
Erica, the stunning girls of the Primo Piano agency in Mestre, for their helpfulness and
professionalism.

The show was attended all the day by members and their companions, who
could admire the wonderful photo exhibitions by Gianni Angelini and Carlo Lastrucci, as
well as the many images sent by members for the group exhibition and the Day contest.

Gianni Angelini displayed an elegant interpretation of the work of
fishers of the Adriatic sea, taken both in black&white and color, with images of rare
intensity. Carlo Lastrucci presented a series of urban landscapes from various cities,
with a very personal view of granted effect.

So we arrived to the end of this wonderful day, with the final meeting
when awards and prizes had to be distributed.

Dario, as the President and especially the "householder"
thanked the many who contributed to the organization of the event. Then the award
presentation took place. The quiz winner was Pedro Oliveira, who won the Pentax binoculars
offered by Protege.

The prize for the most voted picture, dedicated to the memory of the
late Luciano Nustrini, went to Roberto Romano. The nice tripod, offered by Manfrotto
Trading, was given to Roberto by Arnaldo Calanca.

A prize was reserved to the member coming from farther away and this
year we had two foreign members. The Pentax binoculars, again offered by Protege, was won
by John deLoach who didnt miss the occasion to thank everybody for the pleasant
experience of the Pentax Day.

A special recognition for his commitment who made him distinguish among
foreign members went to Pedro Oliveira, who looked touched while accepting the trophy from
Darios hands.

And then something unexpected happened: Dr. Dal Moro, director of photo
division of Protege, wanted to thank all club members and mainly our President, Dario
Bonazza for the commitment, the seriousness and the enthusiasm with which we manage our
association both in Italy and abroad, thus spreading the history of technical innovations
from Pentax. While giving Dario a magnificent plate as token of appreciation, he bade
farewell to all members with a goodbye until next Pentax Day, renewing his promise for
co-operation between Protege and AOHC.

Then we said goodbye each other, making appointments for the next year.
We still dont know where, but we are all convinced that it will be another great
day.

Ermanno Barchiesi

SEVENTY TWO HOURS...

Dario asked me to write a few words about the 5th Pentax Day giving my
personal view of the event.

It was a great day, without any doubt. I had the opportunity to meet
many AOHC members and, with some, I even had very interesting conversations in spite of my
very poor "Italian". This is indeed a great club!!

The activities during the day were sufficiently diversified, leading us
all to try our skill in model shooting while experimenting with new Pentax lenses from
Protege, new films from Ferrania, and new tripods from Manfrotto. It was heaven for the
Pentax fan!!! And our cameras and lenses could even be tested at the technical table (to
my great relief my recently bought 19 year-old LX and lenses were OK!). The AOHC member
photo competition was of a very high standard, in my opinion, being an incentive for all
of us to take even more and better pictures with Pentax cameras and lenses. The AOHC
annual meeting was also very interesting even if I did not understand the most part of it.

Being impossible to thank everyone personally, I thank you all for the
kind reception and team spirit of AOHC members and Im sure that the Pentax Day will
continue to be a major event for all Pentax fans in the future.

But, for me, the 5th Pentax Day began Friday and only ended on Monday.
Dario was very kind in inviting me to stay at his home, so we had plenty of time to get to
know each other even better (and this time not via e-mail or telephone). For me it was a
real pleasure and a great honour to share those 72 hours with Dario and his lovely family.
Thanks Dario!